Columbus, Indiana: what to do with a dead car

What Columbus calls inoperable and unlicensed

Section 10.48.030 sets the terms. An "Inoperable vehicle" is one "that is partially dismantled, mechanically inoperable, or unsafe to drive." An "Unlicensed vehicle" is one "not currently registered" that lacks a plate showing the current sticker. The word vehicle covers far more than cars: trucks, trailers, motorcycles, buses and motor homes are all named.

Section 10.28.220 adds two more lines that matter for a dead car:

• "If the condition of the vehicle is inoperable for more than forty-eight hours in duration, the repairs shall be conducted entirely within an enclosed building."
• "Inoperable vehicles and vehicles parts shall be stored inside an enclosed building."

The same section says no vehicle may sit "in the city right of way between a curb and sidewalk."

The 30-day and 10-day steps on public property

Section 10.48.095 makes it a violation to keep "any unlicensed or inoperable vehicles or parts thereof on public property, including city right-of-way." The process runs in stages:

1. After an investigation, an enforcement officer or police officer can issue a warning or written demand.
2. You get "thirty days from the receipt of the notice" to remove the car or fix the problem.
3. If that passes, a citation gives "ten days" more.
4. After that, a court may order the car removed and charge removal and storage to the owner or the person living at the property.
5. Once stored, a car not claimed "within fifteen days from its removal" may be sold under state law.

Abandoned cars and the 72-hour tag

A separate track covers cars the city treats as abandoned. Under 10.48.030 that includes a car left unmoved on public property for three days. The window becomes thirty days for "a properly licensed vehicle" parked in front of the owner's home. A car with the "engine, transmission or differential" removed, or one "otherwise partially dismantled or inoperable," counts too once it is left on public property. So does a towed car nobody claims within fifteen days.

When an officer finds one, Section 10.48.060 calls for a notice tag stating "That the vehicle or parts will be removed after seventy-two hours." The tag also warns that the owner pays for removal, storage and disposal. Unpaid costs can bring a suspension of registration privileges, "including but not limited to the seizure of the license plate." After 72 hours the officer has the car towed. Section 10.48.070 then has police tell the owner or lienholder that those costs are their legal responsibility. For what comes after a tow, see towed or impounded.

The BMV on Ray Boll Boulevard

Columbus titles run through the Indiana BMV, a state agency, rather than Bartholomew County. We checked the branch at 4445 Ray Boll Blvd. In a straight line, that's roughly 3 miles northeast of downtown. Its listed phone is 888-692-6841. Kiosks branded BMV Connect and Partial Service Providers handle some of the same work.

Bartholomew County is outside the emissions testing program, which covers only Lake and Porter counties.

Your side of the Indiana title

For a Columbus seller the back of the title is the whole job. Every co-owner on a Columbus title prints their name and signs. Below that go the mileage, the date the car changed hands, what it sold for, and the buyer's details. The BMV's list includes no notary, and it says a bill of sale doesn't need one. Everything after that is the buyer's errand.

Keep the plate. The BMV's FAQ stresses taking plates off before a sale, and you may bolt them onto another car you own.

If the title is lost, two routes exist:

• A duplicate. State Form 205 costs $15.00, with an extra $25 for the rushed version. Apply through myBMV.com, a branch, a kiosk or a Partial Service Provider. The old title is void once the duplicate issues.
• A Certificate of Authority. For $4.00, State Form 55018 lets you scrap a car with a lost or faulty title and skip getting a new one. Proof of ownership can be a current registration or an insurance settlement.

Our junk car with no title guide walks through both.

When an insurer totals it

State law calls for a certificate of salvage title on a vehicle made within the last seven model years that an insurer has settled as economically impractical to repair, or that is flood damaged. Flood damage, in state law, means water that came in above the door sill into the cabin or trunk. Wrecked or flooded, it can still go as a whole car.

Nearby

Seymour is 18.1 miles away, Franklin 21.1, Shelbyville 24.7 and Greenwood 29.1. Statewide rules are on the Indiana page.

Getting an offer

Phone (877) 421-6008 or fill in the form. Describe your Columbus car on the offer form. Our tow truck comes to the car: a Columbus driveway off a side street, a spot behind a full garage, or the repair shop that gave you the bad news.